Thursday, March 03, 2005

Now this is Medicine in the Trenches!!!!

As many of you know I will be going to visit Devin and Laurie in Nigeria in a few weeks. They shared with me an incredible story of doing heart surgery on a patient shot in the chest with arrows----with no heart-lung machine! This is an inspirational story and they have given me permission to share it:

"This story is so great that it just has to be told. About a month ago, a patient traveled hundreds of miles to come to Evangel Hospital. This patient had been attacked and shot by 2 arrows, one in the heart and one in the right lower chest area. He was from up North, so he traveled to several different towns trying to find someone who could help him. Thankfully, no one tried to pull out the arrows. He was finally told to go to Jos and maybe the surgeon there could help him. He was traveling by public transport from place to place. Now, if you’ve never experienced public transport in a third world country, it is something to see. Picture about 16 people with luggage, babies, chickens etc. crammed into a van that we would think would accommodate 8 people. Then you add potholes in the road, etc to feel every bump.


So he arrived, four days later, with 2 arrows sticking out of him. One was swaying back and forth with every beat of his heart because it was imbedded in the heart. Dr. Ardill was the surgeon who began to operate on him. When he removed the arrow from the heart, the heart started to bleed profusely. Miraculously, he was able to sew up the heart and got the bleeding to stop. Keep in mind that Dr. Ardill is a very gifted surgeon, but not a heart surgeon and there is no fancy equipment here like a heart-lung machine. Dr. Anthis and Devin also scrubbed in on the case to assist! The arrow was also removed from the chest and that was sewn up. Everyone around was amazed that the man was alive and made it through the surgery.

As this man recovered in the days following his surgery, he realized that he had been as good as dead, yet had been miraculously saved. This man was Fulani (who typically herd cows) and from a very strict Muslim background...He will be facing a lot of persecution, though, when those around him find out that he is now a Christian. I heard today that some Muslims have found out about his conversion to Christianity and are now trying to get him to convert back with offers of money and paying his hospital bills."

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is an incredible story. Thanks for sharing. Fulani had arrows in the heart, and it helped his heart find the The True Love. I pray for him to face the arrows to come from his muslim people.

Anonymous said...

wow Hardy, impressive story. Where/how did he 'find' Christianity??
Rachel

Anonymous said...

Here's another "anonymous" agreeing with the first "anonymous" 100%: I certainly HOPE that this man's conversion was not a condition before his surgery...
Inge

hdhindsa said...

From the chief surgeon's website:

"They were able to remove the arrow from the heart and the other from the lung. Miraculously the man survived. Within the next week a friend of ours who is a Bible translator in the Fulani language visited our house and was able to share the Gospel in the Fulani language with this man whose life God had so clearly spared. After our patient heard the Gospel, he committed his life to the Lord. He has continued to recover at the hospital. Our newest hospital chaplain is Fulani and has been a great encouragement to him. He is doing well both physically and spiritually."

So, no, "conversion was not a condition before his surgery"

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